WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR MAY 2018

Rebecca

Rori - enjoy the Poconos! It's lovely to see you taking advantage of your retirement to pack your days with joy and experiences that feed the heart.

Katla - we had just that experience the other night with a whole chicken. We seldom buy them, because there's just the two of us. It was literally inedible. So, the next morning, I pitched the whole blinking thing in the big pot with lots of water and spices, simmered it all day and turned it into five quart jars of chicken stock. More than made up for the price we paid, as chicken stock is getting expensive, and should be terrific in soups, stews, sauces, using it to cook rice, etc. If I had dogs, I would have cut up the shredded chicken meat and fed it to them, but we just chucked it--all the flavor is now in that stock.

Karen in VA - I've worked from my home for quite a bit of my professional life, and I love it. At some point, I always have to visit the office of whatever firm I'm working for, and find myself frustrated by the chaos and distractions that always seem to arise in offices--and also find myself completely unproductive, I might add. I have a hard time working in office situations, and when I've absolutely had to, end up shutting my door a lot. Things I've had to do in order to be successful at home:

1. Got a headset for my phone. Over the years, it's morphed from a wired one to a bluetooth, but I have to be able to write notes, usually on the keyboard, and need both hands. Crooking your neck to keep a phone at your ear will do really bad things to your neck very quickly. You're also on the phone much more than in a traditional office to get things done. Headsets make it so much easier.
2. Spent the money on a good office chair. I'm in it at least nine hours a day, sometimes 12. All kitchen chairs are tall enough that my feet dangle. Not an option for long with my knees.
3. Had a separate space where, when I'm done, I can shut a door, or go on the other side of a room screen, or whatever it takes, and be done with work. If you don't provide some separation, you're always at work, and risk burning out quickly.
4. Declined to work at the kitchen table, not because of physical comfort, but because the kitchen and the food are right there, and I was constantly in the refrigerator.
5. Set the expectation with my co-workers that, at a specific time at least somewhat matching their quitting time, I'm done for the day. I don't answer the phone or answer e-mails after that point.

The benefits of working at home far outweigh the inconveniences. I'm often three or four times as productive as my coworkers. My commute is 30 seconds, from the coffee machine to my office. The only traffic is possibly tripping over Egg the cat. And, since I have a bluetooth and my e-mail routes to my phone as well, if I have to go to the store, I go, without any eyebrows raised as I depart my office. And, honestly, it keeps me out of most of the office gossip, backbiting and drama. I love that, possibly, most of all.

Lisa in Arkansas